DUSHANBE, February 3, 2010, Asia-Plus — A statement by Uzbek Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyoyev that the United Nations, the European Union, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank as well as the Russian Federation and other countries have allegedly supported Uzbekistan’s position on the Roghun hydroelectricity project does not correspondent to the facts, Mirzosharif Islomiddinov, head of the Committee on Energy,, Industry ad Construction within the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower chamber of parliament), said in an interview with Asia-Plus, commenting on the article released by Uzbek Pravda Vostoka on February 3.
According to him, no one international organization and no one country, except Uzbekistan itself, has applied to Tajik authorities with the call for carrying out independent assessment studies for the Roghun project and they have not officially made objections against the construction of the Roghun HPP.
“Once, the European Union published report recommending Tajikistan to think about construction of small and medium-sized hydropower plants and that was stipulated by the fact that our country had to find accelerated measures to come out of the energy crisis,” noted Islomiddinov, “As far as I know, the European Union has moved away from that position.”
